Written Answers Tuesday 11 September 2007

Scottish Executive

Adult Entertainment

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it will take to implement the recommendations of the Adult Entertainment Working Group.

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what legislative steps it will take to support the implementation of the recommendations of the Adult Entertainment Working Group.

Kenny MacAskill: I recently met members of the former Adult Entertainment Working Group, including the former Chair, Linda Costelloe Baker, to discuss its report and options for taking its recommendations forward. I plan to set out soon how we will take the recommendations forward.

Apprenticeships

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what priority it places on ensuring that young people have continued access to modern apprenticeship schemes.

Fiona Hyslop: As announced in the Skills Strategy which we launched on 10 September I am pleased to confirm that we will implement the conclusions of the modern apprenticeship (MA) consultation which demonstrates our on-going commitment to the programme.

  The funding of the MA programme in Scotland is an operational matter for Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise. The programme is demand led and is reliant on the willingness of employers to recruit, employ and support MAs for the duration of their training.

Apprenticeships

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to alter the current modern apprenticeship (MA) scheme.

Fiona Hyslop: As announced in the Skills Strategy which we launched on 10 September I am pleased to confirm that we will implement the conclusions of the MA consultation and in particular we will extend MAs to S/NVQ level 2 (SCQF 5) and phase out the Skillseekers programme. We shall also seek to embed the SCQF into the MA programme to help participants to gain credit for their skills within further study.

Civil Service Relocation

John Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to relocate any of its departments and agencies to the North Lanarkshire local authority area.

John Swinney: I refer the member to the question S3W-2952 on 14 August 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Civil Service Relocation

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-2952 by John Swinney on 14 August 2007 and given that it will make an announcement in due course on future policy on the location of public sector posts, on what basis it decided to base the new Scottish Legal Complaints Commission in Edinburgh and to cancel the planned relocation of NHS Health Scotland, NHS Quality Improvement Scotland and NHS Education for Scotland to Glasgow.

John Swinney: The decision to base the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission in Edinburgh was taken following careful consideration of the options identified by the previous administration. As the Cabinet Secretary for Justice noted in his announcement, the decision reflects the need to ensure that the location chosen should be suitably accessible to potential users and would enable business continuity as well as representing a cost-effective solution offering the potential for future sharing of accommodation and/or sharing of services with other scrutiny bodies.

  The decision to not to relocate the three NHS Special Health Boards from Edinburgh was taken following an examination of the full business cases for the move which demonstrated that this did not represent the best use of resources which could be better invested in front-line services and in tackling health inequalities.

Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007

Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 addresses the principle of aggregation identified in the Transco case.

Kenny MacAskill: The Scottish Government considers that the senior management test and the objective test of a gross breach of a relevant duty of care set out in the act combine effectively to address the difficulties in proceeding under the common law that were highlighted by the Transco case, including that of aggregation.

Domestic Abuse

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to support perpetrator programmes in cases of domestic abuse.

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what funding it has committed to supporting perpetrator programmes since May 2007.

Kenny MacAskill: In the current financial year the Scottish Government has provided £374,799 to Community Justice Authorities for the specific purpose of delivery of perpetrator programmes by certain of the constituent local authorities within their areas. This funding is provided under section 27(1) of the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968.

  In addition, many other authorities undertake work with perpetrators of domestic abuse as part of their overall section 27 grant settlement but it is not possible in these instances to identify the specific amounts attributable to work with this group of offenders.

  The Scottish Government sponsored Caledonian System incorporates a programme which seeks to challenge and rehabilitate perpetrators of domestic abuse. This has been submitted to the Scottish Accreditation Panel for Offender Programmes and is due to be considered by the panel this month. Decisions on future roll-out of the Caledonian System will be informed by the outcomes of the accreditation application.

Efficient Government

Bill Butler (Glasgow Anniesland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much money it has saved by cutting bureaucracy between 17 May and 3 September 2007.

Bill Butler (Glasgow Anniesland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide a detailed breakdown of the money that has been saved by decisions to cut bureaucracy between 17 May and 3 September 2007, showing (a) date of decision, (b) amount saved and (c) description of what was cut.

John Swinney: Estimated savings realised through the restructuring of the Scottish Government and consequent reductions in the number of ministerial and official posts are shown in the following table. These changes were introduced with immediate effect when this government took office.

  

Ministers
£230,000


Special Advisers
£209,467*


Private Office staff
£394,000


Heads of Department
£300,000


Total
£1,133,467



  Note: *comparison is with costs for 2005-06.

  Further background is available on the Scottish Government website at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/About/govtmay307 and in the answers to question S3W-29 on 30 May 2007 and S3W-136 on 5 June 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

  Bill Butler (Glasgow Anniesland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much money has been saved by its decisions to reverse measures initiated by previous administrations between 17 May and 3 September 2007.

Bill Butler (Glasgow Anniesland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide a detailed breakdown of the money that has been saved by decisions to reverse measures initiated by previous administrations between 17 May and 3 September 2007, showing (a) date of decision, (b) amount saved and (c) description of decision reversed.

John Swinney: Changes to the Scottish Budget will be made, as normal, in the autumn and spring budget revisions.

Employment

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will implement the employability strategy developed by the previous administration.

Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Government’s Skills Strategy, launched on 10 September, confirms our commitment to providing opportunities for everyone to contribute to Scotland’s prosperity, to encouraging the integration of employment and skills services, and to addressing the skills needs of people furthest from the labour market. We are continuing to support Workforce Plus implementation plans in seven priority areas and in other local authority areas implementing the strategy voluntarily. I will be reviewing longer term plans for the employability strategy in the coming months.

Environment

Rhona Brankin (Midlothian) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s (SPEA) regulatory activity is directed at farming.

Michael Russell: It is estimated that between 3% and 4% of SEPA’s charging income, which recovers the costs of SEPA’s regulatory activities, comes from the farming and crofting sectors, and that between 2% and 3% of SEPA’s staff routinely deal with businesses in these sectors.

  In addition to its regulatory activity involving farmers and crofters, SEPA staff spend a substantial amount of time on regulatory activity involving other businesses based in rural Scotland and on more general environmental activities such as flood warning, flood risk and flood advisory work which benefits the environment and those living and working in rural communities.

Environment

Rhona Brankin (Midlothian) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to its news release of 16 June 2007 entitled Keeping It Simple in the Countryside, what proportion of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s regulatory activity is directly related to the countryside.

Michael Russell: It is estimated that 7% of SEPA’s charging income, which recovers the costs of SEPA’s regulatory activities, is directly related to the countryside. This includes the regulation of the agriculture, fish farming and forestry sectors. Approximately 3% to 5% of SEPA’s staff routinely deal with businesses in these sectors.

  In addition SEPA staff spend a substantial amount of time on regulatory activity involving other businesses based in rural Scotland and on more general environmental activities such as flood warning, flood risk and flood advisory work which benefits the environment and those living and working in the countryside as well as those in urban communities.

Fatal Accident Inquiries

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S3W-2421, S3W-2423, S3W-2425, S3W-2426, S3W-2427 and S3W-2428 by Frank Mulholland QC on 22 August 2007, how the Scottish Government monitors the effectiveness of the fatal accident inquiry system, given the level of information and data specifically related to the system that is not centrally collated.

Kenny MacAskill: The Procurator Fiscal is responsible for investigating all sudden, suspicious, unexplained, unexpected or accidental deaths and will consider, based on all the facts and circumstances, whether a fatal accident inquiry (FAI) is necessary.

  Current legislation provides for mandatory fatal accident inquiries in respect of deaths which occur in the course of employment or in legal custody, and for discretionary FAIs where it appears to the Lord Advocate to be in the public interest to hold such an inquiry. A full investigation by the Procurator Fiscal will precede an FAI.

  FAIs are held in public. The sheriff who presides over the FAI makes a determination, on the facts and circumstances of the case at the conclusion of the FAI and may issue recommendations which are not currently legally enforceable.

  The Scottish Government maintains a public database of FAI determinations.

Health

Ian McKee (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the incidence was of (a) women, (b) men, (c) children and (d) adolescents who were (i) overweight and (ii) obese in each year since 2003, broken down by NHS board area.

Shona Robison: Obesity statistics are available from the Scottish Health Survey . The most recent survey was run in 2003 . Statistics for adults are available by NHS board area (grouped for the island boards because of the relatively small numbers involved). Statistics for children are not available at NHS board level from this source.

  Prevalence of obesity and overweight by age and sex (children aged 2 to 15 years):

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/11/25145024/50271.

  (See Table 5.5 on page 123 for Scotland level figures.)

  Prevalence of obesity and overweight by age and sex (adults aged 16+ years):

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/11/25145024/50261.

  (See Table 5.5 on page 175 for Scotland level figures.)

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/11/25145024/50256.

  (See worksheet labelled "BMI" for NHS board level figures.)

  In addition, for more up-to-date statistics on obesity in children, all NHS boards in Scotland are required to provide a Child Health Surveillance Programme where children are offered routine reviews at various stages of their life. The majority of Boards record these reviews using the electronic child health systems, CHSP-Pre-School and CHSP-School. http://www.isdscotland.org/child_obesity.

  (Click on "obesity statistics" to access a list of available tables and charts.)

Housing

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish all research carried out for the Housing Supply Task Force.

Stewart Maxwell: The primary purpose of the Housing Supply Task Force is to tackle blockages that are preventing the construction of housing across Scotland. The focus will be on action to address these impediments and at this stage it is not envisaged that specially-commissioned research will be a feature of the task force’s activities. Task force members will be contributing their in-depth understandings of the issues to the meetings and are best placed to inform discussion on these issues.

  There is an expectation, however, that all research commissioned by the Scottish Government is published on the Scottish Government website as soon as a final report can be made available. Should any research be commissioned to support the task force, this would be published in the normal way.

Housing

Jamie Hepburn (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many homes sold by local authorities under right to buy legislation have been bought back by the local authority in each year since 1990, broken down by local authority.

Stewart Maxwell: The information requested is not held centrally.

Justice

Jeremy Purvis (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-2086 by Kenny MacAskill on 27 July 2007, what average length of time is taken to analyse a DNA profile to identify an individual.

Kenny MacAskill: I have asked David Mulhern, Chief Executive of the Scottish Police Services Authority, to respond. His response is as follows:

  The process of identifying whether or not a newly developed DNA profile matches a profile that is already on the database is almost instantaneous.

Justice

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people convicted of causing death by careless driving in each of the last 10 years were (a) unlicensed, (b) disqualified and (c) uninsured.

Kenny MacAskill: The available information on convictions for causing death by careless driving when under the influence of drink or drugs was given in reply to answer to question S3W-3738 on 11 September 2007 which is available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search . The new offence of causing death by careless driving was introduced on 8 November 2006 by the Road Safety Act 2006. Convictions data for 2006-07 are not yet available.

Justice

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people convicted of causing death by careless driving in each of the last 10 years were driving under the influence of (a) alcohol and (b) illegal drugs.

Kenny MacAskill: The available information is given in the following table. The figures cannot be split into alcohol and drugs.

  Persons with a Charge Proved in Scottish Courts for Causing Death by Careless Driving when Under the Influence when Under the Influence of Drink or Drugs1, 1996-97 to 2005-06.

  

Year
Number


1996-97
1


1997-98
6


1998-99
1


1999-2000
2


2000-01
2


2001-02
2


2002-03
-


2003-04
3


2004-05
5


2005-06
3



  Note: 1. Where main offence is under section 3A of the Road Transport Act 1988.

Justice

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) retailers and (b) licensees have been prosecuted for selling tobacco products to underage customers in each year since 2000, broken down by local authority area.

Kenny MacAskill: The available information is given in the following table. No breakdown of these figures into prosecutions of retailers and licensees is available from the data held centrally.

  Persons Proceeded Against in Scottish Courts for Selling Tobacco to Persons Under 161, by Approximate Local Authority Area2, 2000-01 to 2005-06

  

Local Authority
2000-01
2001-02
2002-03
2003-04
2005-06


Aberdeenshire 
-
-
-
1
-


East Lothian 
-
-
-
-
1


Edinburgh, City of 
-
-
-
2
-


North Lanarkshire 
-
1
-
-
-


West Lothian 
-
-
-
-
1


Scotland
-
1
-
3
2



  Notes:

  1. Where main offence.

  2. Incorporates an approximate mapping of sheriff courts into local authority areas. Some sheriff courts will deal with cases from more than one local authority area. Some local authority areas, including East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Midlothian and North Ayrshire, do not contain a sheriff court.

  More recent information available from the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service shows that in 2006-07 a total of 11 people were subject to court proceedings in respect of illegal sales of tobacco.

Justice

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many prosecutions of (a) retailers and (b) licensees for selling tobacco products to underage customers in each year since 2000 resulted in convictions, broken down by local authority area.

Kenny MacAskill: The available information is given in the following table. No breakdown of these figures into prosecutions of retailers and licensees is available from the data held centrally.

  Persons with a Charge Proved in Scottish Courts for Selling Tobacco to Persons Under 161, by Approximate Local Authority Area2, 2000-01 to 2005-06

  

Local Authority
2000-01
2001-02
2002-03
2003-04
2005-06


Aberdeenshire 
-
-
-
1
-


East Lothian 
-
-
-
-
1


Edinburgh, City of 
-
-
-
2
-


North Lanarkshire 
-
1
-
-
-


West Lothian 
-
-
-
-
1


Scotland
-
1
-
3
2



  Notes:

  1. Where main offence.

  2. Incorporates an approximate mapping of sheriff courts into local authority areas. Some sheriff courts will deal with cases from more than one local authority area. Some local authority areas, including East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Midlothian and North Ayrshire, do not contain a sheriff court.

  More recent information available from the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service shows that in 2006-07 a total of 11 people were subject to court proceedings in respect of illegal sales of tobacco.

Justice

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what powers of arrest the police have in relation to consumption of alcohol in public places under (a) relevant legislation and (b) common law.

Kenny MacAskill: Section 61 of the Crime and Punishment (Scotland) Act 1997 provides that if a constable suspects that a person in a public place is under the age of 18 and is in possession of alcohol, he or she may confiscate the alcohol and dispose of it. The police can also confiscate and dispose of alcohol from people in a public place who are over the age of 18 if they suspect that that person has supplied, or will supply alcohol to a person under 18 for consumption in a public place. The police may arrest without a warrant any person who does not comply with such a requirement.

  The police also have powers of arrest at common law to tackle drunkenness and certain offences, such as possessing or consuming alcohol in a public places under local alcohol byelaws. There are also specific powers of arrest under section 50 and 59 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, in relation to being drunk and incapable in a public place, and section 21 of the Criminal Law Consolidation (Scotland) Act 1995, in relation to possession of alcohol at sporting events.

Justice

Aileen Campbell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) number and (b) percentage of individuals found guilty of breach of the peace have served custodial sentences for the offences that they committed in each of the last five years.

Aileen Campbell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) number and (b) percentage of individuals found guilty of possession of offensive weapons have served custodial sentences for the offences that they committed in each of the last five years.

Aileen Campbell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) number and (b) percentage of individuals found guilty of assault have served custodial sentences for the offences that they committed in each of the last five years.

Aileen Campbell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) number and (b) percentage of individuals found guilty of serious assault have served custodial sentences for the offences that they committed in each of the last five years.

Aileen Campbell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) number and (b) percentage of individuals found guilty of theft have served custodial sentences for the offences that they committed in each of the last five years.

Aileen Campbell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) number and (b) percentage of individuals found guilty of housebreaking have served custodial sentences for the offences that they committed in each of the last five years.

Aileen Campbell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) number and (b) percentage of individuals found guilty of fraud have served custodial sentences for the offences that they committed in each of the last five years.

Aileen Campbell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) number and (b) percentage of individuals found guilty of theft of a motor vehicle have served custodial sentences for the offences that they committed in each of the last five years.

Aileen Campbell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) number and (b) percentage of individuals found guilty of shoplifting have served custodial sentences for the offences that they committed in each of the last five years.

Aileen Campbell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) number and (b) percentage of individuals found guilty of theft by opening a lockfast place have served custodial sentences for the offences that they committed in each of the last five years.

Aileen Campbell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) number and (b) percentage of individuals found guilty of vandalism have served custodial sentences for the offences that they committed in each of the last five years.

Aileen Campbell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) number and (b) percentage of individuals found guilty of crimes against public justice have served custodial sentences for the offences that they committed in each of the last five years.

Aileen Campbell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) number and (b) percentage of individuals found guilty of possession of illegal substances have served custodial sentences for the offences that they committed in each of the last five years.

Aileen Campbell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) number and (b) percentage of individuals found guilty of fire-raising have served custodial sentences for the offences that they committed in each of the last five years.

Mr Kenny MacAskill: The available information on the number and percentage of persons found guilty of a range of crimes and offences who received a custodial sentence is given in the following table.

  Persons Receiving a Custodial Sentence from Scottish Courts for Selected Crimes and Offences1, 2001-02 to 2005-06: Number and Percentage of All Persons with a Charge Proved

  

Main Crime or Offence
Number of Persons Receiving a Custodial Sentence
Number of Persons Receiving a Custodial Sentence as a Percentage of all Persons with a Charge Proved


2001-02
2002-03
2003-04
2004-05
2005-06
2001-
02
2002-03
2003-04
2004-05
2005-06


Serious assault and attempted murder
611
687
710
686
606
52
51
48
50
48


Housebreaking
1,374
1,336
1,213
1,117
884
51
49
48
47
44


Theft by opening a lockfast place
579
577
475
391
324
39
40
37
33
35


Theft of a motor vehicle
349
424
293
263
218
25
29
23
24
23


Shoplifting
2,419
2,492
2,324
2,372
2,283
29
28
29
28
29


Other theft
1,192
1,013
898
923
802
28
27
26
26
26


Fraud
164
155
144
143
154
11
11
10
11
13


Fire-raising
43
52
52
47
59
34
35
31
24
34


Vandalism etc
276
290
378
388
357
7
7
8
8
8


Crimes against public justice
995
1,021
1,007
1,122
1,277
19
20
19
19
23


Handling an offensive weapon
627
717
641
760
882
24
26
22
22
26


Drugs
952
948
990
1,021
929
16
16
14
14
13


Common assault
1,354
1,512
1,478
1,717
1,744
13
13
12
13
12


Breach of the peace
1,192
1,249
1,248
1,396
1,593
9
9
8
9
10



  Note: 1. Where main offence.

Justice

Kenneth Gibson (Cunninghame North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many dogs were reported stolen in each of the last three years.

Kenny MacAskill: The recorded crime statistics do not identify details of individual crimes, such as the nature of items which have been stolen, however police forces may be able to supply this information if contacted directly.

Justice

Kenneth Gibson (Cunninghame North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people were prosecuted for stealing one or more dogs in each of the last three years.

Kenny MacAskill: The information requested cannot be identified separately from other thefts in the data held centrally.

Police

Des McNulty (Clydebank and Milngavie) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many police officers are involved in enforcing traffic laws on roads on a daily basis.

Kenny MacAskill: All uniformed officers are authorised to enforce road traffic laws, for example, seatbelts, mobile phones and road traffic collisions and so the number of police officers involved in this activity will vary from day-to-day. The road policing units of Scotland’s eight forces have a total complement of 841 officers, broken down as follows:

  

Central Scotland Police 
43


Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary
43


Grampian Police
84


Fife Constabulary
56


Lothian and Borders Police
155


Northern Constabulary
25


Strathclyde Police
364


Tayside Police
71

Property

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to introduce a national accreditation scheme for property managers.

Stewart Maxwell: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-3661 on 6 September 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Property

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the increase in private letting agents who also provide property management services will have implications for the future of property management services.

Stewart Maxwell: We do not hold information on the number of private letting agents who also provide property management services. We understand that many firms have long combined these two roles. However, the landlord registration scheme is intended to ensure that all letting agents are fit and proper persons.

Property

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will help to increase public awareness about the service standards that should be expected from property managers and factors.

Stewart Maxwell: There are no specific service standards that are laid down for property managers and factors, although those that are members of trade or professional bodies are expected to comply with their respective codes of practice. The enforcement of such codes of practice is a matter for those bodies.

  Otherwise service delivery by property managers is a contractual matter between them and their customers, enforceable in the courts. In addition, house owners who are dissatisfied with the service provided by a property manager have powers to dismiss them. Even if the title deeds are silent on this point, the Title Conditions (Scotland) Act 2003 and the Tenements (Scotland) Act 2004 provide that a simple majority of owners can dismiss the property manager and, regardless of what the title deeds specify, a majority of two thirds will always be able to dismiss the property manager. An exception to these provisions is in a new development, where the developer may retain the right to appoint the factor for up to five years after the properties are built or until the last house is sold, whichever is sooner.

Prostitution (Public Places) (Scotland) Act 2007

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when the Prostitution (Public Places) (Scotland) Act 2007 will be commenced.

Kenny MacAskill: The Prostitution (Public Places) (Scotland) Act 2007 will come into force on 15 October 2007.

Prostitution (Public Places) (Scotland) Act 2007

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to ensure that measures taken under the Prostitution (Public Places) (Scotland) Act 2007 are highlighted and publicised.

Kenny MacAskill: We are currently considering options for a publicity campaign to raise awareness of the new offence.

Public Private Partnerships

Jamie Hepburn (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-2233 by John Swinney on 2 August 2007, what the total cost to the taxpayer will be of all existing PFI/PPP projects over the course of their contractual life, broken down by (a) local authority area, (b) NHS board and (c) individual project.

John Swinney: The information requested is provided in the following table.

  Since S3W-2233 was answered on 2 August 2007, two more PPP projects have reached financial close: East Dunbartonshire schools and West Lothian schools. They have been included in the table. The table covers the years 1999-2000 to 2040-41, a period of 42 years and includes estimates for the unitary charges in future years.

  The unitary charge is the amount paid by the public sector procuring body to the private sector consortium for the services it provides over the length of the contract. The services include capital construction, lifecycle maintenance and facilities management, and not just the upfront construction cost of the asset.

  Estimated Accumulated Unitary Charges of Individual PPP Projects Over the Life of the Contract

  

PPP Project
Total Estimated Unitary Charge Over Life of Contract (£ Million)


Aberdeenshire schools PPP1
98.7


Aberdeenshire schools PPP2
200.3


Angus A92
226.0


Angus schools
192.7


Argyll and Bute waste management
130.8


Argyll and Bute schools
207.3


City of Dundee waste to energy
100.4


City of Dundee schools
393.9


City of Edinburgh schools PPP1
502.1


City of Edinburgh schools PPP2
718.2


City of Glasgow schools
1,394.4


Clackmannanshire
264.1


Dumfries and Galloway waste management
236.0


East Ayrshire schools
334.2


East Dunbartonshire schools
501.0


East Lothian schools
221.1


East Renfrewshire schools PPP1
79.6


East Renfrewshire schools PPP2
225.6


Falkirk schools PPP1
349.8


Falkirk schools PPP2
459.0


Fife schools PPP1
181.2


Fife schools PPP2
215.8


Highland IT
40.0


Highland schools PPP1
86.9


Highland schools PPP2
620.3


Midlothian schools PPP1
154.1


Midlothian schools PPP2
171.3


Moray IT
14.1


North Ayrshire schools
383.6


North Ayrshire college
36.9


North Lanarkshire schools
678.8


Perth and Kinross office accommodation
83.2


Renfrewshire schools
501.9


Scottish Borders
302.1


South Ayrshire schools
348.4


South Lanarkshire schools
1,184.7


Stirling - Balfron
83.1


Stirling schools PPP2
424.5


Stirling college
15.7


West Lothian schools PPP1
180.8


West Lothian schools PPP2
252.9


Sub-total for local authorities
12,795.5


Health
 


NHS Ayrshire and Arran Crosshouse
76.0


NHS Ayrshire and Arran East Ayrshire Community Hospital
37.7


NHS Dumfries and Galloway Maternity Unit
66.9


NHS Grampian Kincardine Community Hospital
11.8


NHS Highland Easter Ross
36.2


NHS Highland New Craigs
106.0


NHS Lanarkshire Bupa Homes
7.6


NHS Lanarkshire Stonehouse
19.7


NHS Lanarkshire Hairmyres
599.5


NHS Lanarkshire Wishaw
762.5


NHS Lothian Ferryfield House
28.2


NHS Lothian Ellen’s Glen House
32.2


NHS Lothian Findlay House
24.9


NHS Lothian Royal Infirmary Edinburgh
1,490.9


NHS Lothian HIS
27.6


NHS Lothian PACS
14.1


NHS Lothian Tippethill
28.6


NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde 210 DME Unit
76.8


NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde South Glasgow University Hospitals HIS
4.0


NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Yorkhill HIS
3.6


NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Gartnavel Royal Hospital
75.8


NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Stobhill and Victoria ACADs
480.0


NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Mid Argyll Community Hospital
66.3


NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Stobhill Forensic Unit
64.2


NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Larkfield
47.0


NHS Tayside 16 small projects
8.7


NHS Tayside Carseview
58.5


NHS Tayside Forfar
44.3


Sub-total for health
4,299.6


Water and Sewerage
 


Inverness Main Drainage/Fort William Sewage Treatment 
195.0


Tay Waste Water Project
617.0


Aberdeen sewage and sludge treatment 
515.0


Moray Coast Waste Water Project
359.7


Almond Valley, Esk Valley and Seafield Sewage Scheme
687.0


Levenmouth Purification Scheme
741.6


Dalmuir Sewage Treatment
168.5


Daldowie/Shieldhall Sludge Treatment Centres 
451.7


Meadowhead Sewage Treatment 
403.4


Sub-total for water and sewerage
4,138.9


Justice¹
 


National Roads and Transport
 


M6 DBFO
754.5


M77/Glasgow Southern Orbital Road (SE/East Renfrewshire)²
521.2


Sub-total for national roads and transport
1,275.7


Social Work
 


SCRA - Integrated Information System 
22.8


Other
 


Police Force Training Centre, East Kilbride
100.4


Scotland total
22,632.9



  Notes:

  1. Information on the unitary charge for Kilmarnock Prison is available in the Scottish Prison Service Annual Reports which can be found at http://www.sps.gov.uk/Default.asp?menuid=230.

  2. The M77/GSO is a joint project between the Executive, East Renfrewshire and South Lanarkshire Councils.

  3. The table does not include figures for Skye Bridge, Inverness Airport and West Lothian College as these are no longer existing PPP projects.

Public Private Partnerships

Des McNulty (Clydebank and Milngavie) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made in establishing a Scottish trust for public investment.

John Swinney: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-3600 on 4 September 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Schools

Tom McCabe (Hamilton South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will guarantee that the establishment of a Scottish futures trust, as promised in the SNP manifesto, will not cause the scheduled replacement of the St Anne’s Primary School building in Hamilton to be postponed or cancelled.

John Swinney: The replacement of St Anne’s Primary School in Hamilton is a matter for South Lanarkshire Council which has a statutory responsibility to provide and maintain school buildings.

  There are several procurement options open to public sector procuring bodies and it is their responsibility to assess which is most appropriate for any investment they are undertaking. As regards the Scottish Futures Trust, work on the design aspects is underway, and we believe it will be able to deliver better value arrangements for major public infrastructure projects. We will make an announcement when we are ready to explain it in more detail.

Schools

Tom McCabe (Hamilton South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will guarantee that the establishment of a Scottish futures trust, as promised in the SNP manifesto, will not cause the scheduled replacement of the St Blane’s Primary School building in Blantyre to be postponed or cancelled.

John Swinney: The replacement of St Blane’s Primary School in Blantyre is a matter for South Lanarkshire Council which has a statutory responsibility to provide and maintain school buildings.

  There are several procurement options open to public sector procuring bodies and it is their responsibility to assess which is most appropriate for any investment they are undertaking. As regards the Scottish Futures Trust, work on the design aspects is underway, and we believe it will be able to deliver better value arrangements for major public infrastructure projects. We will make an announcement when we are ready to explain it in more detail.

Schools

Tom McCabe (Hamilton South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will guarantee that the establishment of a Scottish futures trust, as promised in the SNP manifesto, will not cause the scheduled replacement of St Ninian’s Primary School in Hamilton to be postponed or cancelled.

John Swinney: The replacement of St Ninian’s Primary School in Hamilton is a matter for South Lanarkshire Council which has a statutory responsibility to provide and maintain school buildings.

  There are several procurement options open to public sector procuring bodies and it is their responsibility to assess which is most appropriate for any investment they are undertaking. As regards the Scottish Futures Trust, work on the design aspects is underway, and we believe it will be able to deliver better value arrangements for major public infrastructure projects. We will make an announcement when we are ready to explain it in more detail.

Schools

Tom McCabe (Hamilton South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will guarantee that the establishment of a Scottish futures trust, as promised in the SNP manifesto, will not cause the scheduled refurbishment of Auchinraith Primary School in Blantyre to be postponed or cancelled.

John Swinney: The refurbishment of Auchinraith Primary School in Blantyre is a matter for South Lanarkshire Council which has a statutory responsibility to provide and maintain school buildings.

  There are several procurement options open to public sector procuring bodies and it is their responsibility to assess which is most appropriate for any investment they are undertaking. As regards the Scottish Futures Trust, work on the design aspects is underway, and we believe it will be able to deliver better value arrangements for major public infrastructure projects. We will make an announcement when we are ready to explain it in more detail.

Schools

Tom McCabe (Hamilton South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will guarantee that the establishment of a Scottish futures trust, as promised in the SNP manifesto, will not cause the scheduled replacement of the Townhill Primary School building in Hamilton to be postponed or cancelled.

John Swinney: The replacement of the Townhill Primary School building in Hamilton is a matter for South Lanarkshire Council which has a statutory responsibility to provide and maintain school buildings.

  There are several procurement options open to public sector procuring bodies and it is their responsibility to assess which is most appropriate for any investment they are undertaking. As regards the Scottish Futures Trust, work on the design aspects is underway, and we believe it will be able to deliver better value arrangements for major public infrastructure projects. We will make an announcement when we are ready to explain it in more detail.

Schools

Tom McCabe (Hamilton South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will guarantee that the establishment of a Scottish futures trust, as promised in the SNP manifesto, will not cause the scheduled refurbishment of St Mark’s Primary School in Hamilton to be postponed or cancelled.

John Swinney: The refurbishment of St Mark’s Primary School in Hamilton is a matter for South Lanarkshire Council which has a statutory responsibility to provide and maintain school buildings.

  There are several procurement options open to public sector procuring bodies and it is their responsibility to assess which is most appropriate for any investment they are undertaking. As regards the Scottish Futures Trust, work on the design aspects is underway, and we believe it will be able to deliver better value arrangements for major public infrastructure projects. We will make an announcement when we are ready to explain it in more detail.

Schools

Tom McCabe (Hamilton South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will guarantee that the establishment of a Scottish futures trust, as promised in the SNP manifesto, will not cause the scheduled refurbishment of David Livingstone Memorial Primary School in Blantyre to be postponed or cancelled.

John Swinney: The refurbishment of David Livingstone Memorial Primary School in Blantyre is a matter for South Lanarkshire Council which has a statutory responsibility to provide and maintain school buildings.

  There are several procurement options open to public sector procuring bodies and it is their responsibility to assess which is most appropriate for any investment they are undertaking. As regards the Scottish Futures Trust, work on the design aspects is underway, and we believe it will be able to deliver better value arrangements for major public infrastructure projects. We will make an announcement when we are ready to explain it in more detail.

Schools

Tom McCabe (Hamilton South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will guarantee that the establishment of a Scottish futures trust, as promised in the SNP manifesto, will not cause the scheduled replacement of the Woodhead Primary School building in Hamilton to be postponed or cancelled.

John Swinney: The replacement of the Woodhead Primary School building in Hamilton is a matter for South Lanarkshire Council which has a statutory responsibility to provide and maintain school buildings.

  There are several procurement options open to public sector procuring bodies and it is their responsibility to assess which is most appropriate for any investment they are undertaking. As regards the Scottish Futures Trust, work on the design aspects is underway, and we believe it will be able to deliver better value arrangements for major public infrastructure projects. We will make an announcement when we are ready to explain it in more detail.

Schools

Tom McCabe (Hamilton South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will guarantee that the establishment of a Scottish futures trust, as promised in the SNP manifesto, will not cause the scheduled replacement of the Udston Primary School building in Hamilton to be postponed or cancelled.

John Swinney: The replacement of the Udston Primary School building in Hamilton is a matter for South Lanarkshire Council which has a statutory responsibility to provide and maintain school buildings.

  There are several procurement options open to public sector procuring bodies and it is their responsibility to assess which is most appropriate for any investment they are undertaking. As regards the Scottish Futures Trust, work on the design aspects is underway, and we believe it will be able to deliver better value arrangements for major public infrastructure projects. We will make an announcement when we are ready to explain it in more detail.

Schools

Tom McCabe (Hamilton South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will guarantee that the establishment of a Scottish futures trust, as promised in the SNP manifesto, will not cause the scheduled refurbishment of Quarter Primary School in Quarter to be postponed or cancelled.

John Swinney: The refurbishment of Quarter Primary School in Quarter is a matter for South Lanarkshire Council which has a statutory responsibility to provide and maintain school buildings.

  There are several procurement options open to public sector procuring bodies and it is their responsibility to assess which is most appropriate for any investment they are undertaking. As regards the Scottish Futures Trust, work on the design aspects is underway, and we believe it will be able to deliver better value arrangements for major public infrastructure projects. We will make an announcement when we are ready to explain it in more detail.

Scottish Government Expenditure

Kenneth Gibson (Cunninghame North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much it has spent on external consultants in each year since the establishment of the Parliament.

John Swinney: The information is not held centrally. For such information as is available, I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-18755 on 26 September 2005. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Sport

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whom it will consult on its review of sportscotland.

Stewart Maxwell: The Scottish Government has held a series of meetings with the chair and senior staff of sportscotland, the Scottish Institute of Sport and has had discussions with staff from the Welsh Assembly Government. Further meetings are planned with the Scottish Sports Association, COSLA and VOCAL.

Sport

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will invite the Parliament’s Health and Sport Committee to respond to and scrutinise any proposed changes to sportscotland before such changes are implemented.

Stewart Maxwell: We would be prepared to discuss the review of sportscotland with the committee. I am meeting with the Parliament’s Health and Sport Committee on 19 September and this would be a timely opportunity to explore the issues and listen to the committee’s views before any decisions are taken on the future of sportscotland.

Sport

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive who is undertaking its review of sportscotland.

Stewart Maxwell: The review of sportscotland is being undertaken by officials in the sport division of the Scottish Government’s Health and Wellbeing Directorate.

Sport

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any decisions on the future of sportscotland will be determined by the needs of sport and not by the Executive’s policy of reducing the number of public bodies.

Stewart Maxwell: The future of sportscotland will be determined by the review which is currently being undertaken. The Scottish Government is committed to reducing the number of public bodies. However, the needs of sport will be central to the review process and the final decisions on sportscotland.

Suicide

Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding was provided to agencies in Dumfries and Galloway from the Choose Life suicide prevention programme in (a) 2003-04, (b) 2004-05, (c) 2005-06 and (d) 2006-07 and how much will be provided in 2007-08.

Shona Robison: The following table is a summary of allocation of the Government’s Choose Life funding by the local Community Planning Partnership to local agencies in Dumfries and Galloway for the years 2003-04 up to the current financial year:

  

Year
Allocation


2003-04
86, 000


2004-05
92,000


2005-06
97,000


2006-07
97,000


2007-08
97,000


Total
469,000